This event explores what prospects for UN Reform exist in light of the Ukraine War and with the constraint of a security council that is unlikely to change in the short term. All three speakers have extensive experience working on this issue in the spheres of academia, policy, and practice.

A wine reception will follow.

About our speakers:

Richard Gowan is currently UN director at the International Crisis Group, and was previously research director at New York University’s Center on International Cooperation. He has taught at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs and Stanford in New York. He has acted as a consultant to the UN on peacekeeping, political affairs, and migration. He is an associate fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations.

Federica D’Alessandra is the Deputy Director of the Blavatnik School of Government’s Institute for Ethics, Law, and Armed Conflict (ELAC). Before joining the University of Oxford, Federica held various appointments at Harvard University, where she focused on mass atrocity response and prevention, transitional justice, national security, and human rights. Federica often advises governments and international organisations on her areas of expertise and has served on a number of expert panels.

Sam Daws is a Senior Research Associate with the Department of Politics and International Relations at Oxford University. He served as First Officer to UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan from 2000-2003. He later served as Deputy Director in the UK Cabinet Office supporting the Prime Minister’s role as Co-Chair of the UN Panel on the creation of the Sustainable Development Goals. His previous roles included Senior Principal Research Analyst in the Multilateral Policy Directorate of the FCO, Executive Director of the UN Association of the UK, and UK Representative of the United Nations Foundation.